This invention relates to a programmable printer, and more particularly to apparatus and methods employed therein.
The printer according to the invention disclosed herein is particularly adapted to an industrial environment so as to provide on line production monitoring and reporting. Such printers can be used to provide "hard" copy for plant supervisory and management personnel of essential data such as machine conditions, parts control, running time, tool life, and other desired industrial information.
In addition, the programmable printer herein disclosed is capable of printing both prestored data or data information and external data or data information, either individually or in combination with each other. The capability of intermixing stored data with external data allows the programmable printer to perform such functions as labeling external data so as to readily identify the external data, generating warning information when certain conditions exist in external machinery, generating diagnostic information regarding procedures to follow for correcting a machine malfunction, as well as many other industrial or non-industrial printing functions. Thus a statement such as "LIMIT SWITCH No. 03 FAILED TO TRIP" could be readily printed by the present invention upon receiving the required command and stored data addressing information as well as external data corresponding to the number "03".
Present day printers are primarily made to print information only when such information is properly transferred to its machanisms. Unlike the present invention, most present day printers are not designed for harsh industrial environments. In addition, none of the present day printers are able to intermix prestored data with external data. Furthermore, none of the present day printers are compatible with present day programmable industrial controllers such as the Modicon Model 084 and Modicon Model 184, manufactured by the Modicon Corporation of Andover, Massachusetts.
The present invention allows such industrial controllers to initiate a printing sequence that causes the present invention to retrieve stored data which may in turn command the industrial controller to supply external data. The resulting printout consists of a message with both prestored and external data.
The only known prior art devices that are able to monitor external devices and initiate the production of stored data upon receiving particular command information are the prerecorded emergency message devices used on some aircraft. These devices warn the crew of such aircraft of particular emergency conditions, such as an engine fire. These devices however are not able to receive and display a variety of external data information, nor are they able to intermix external data information with prestored data information.